23 Sep 2008Academy of St Martins in the Fields
St Mary's Church, Shrewsbury
The Shropshire Music Trust, in conjunction with Orchestras Live, presented an impressive opening concert for the 2008-9 season on Tuesday 23 September with the Academy of St Martins in the Fields directed by Kenneth Sillito. St Mary's Church in Shrewsbury provided good acoustics for a programme with a distinctly eastern European flavour with works by a youthful Janacek, a mature Bartok and Dvorak at the outset of his international recognition.
Janacek's Suite for Orchestra, not a widely known work, proved to be a brilliant cameo showcasing excellent string playing from the Academy. Indeed, this quality of sound production and interpretation was the hallmark of the concert, the Academy playing with concentrated and controlled vigour. Surely with this Janacek work and Bartok's entertaining Divertimento for String Orchestra which followed there was little in the whole range of string ensemble playing that remained untouched!
The second half opened with a melodious and thoughtful work 'Aurora' by British composer Thea Musgrave. As a finale Dvorak's well-known Serenade for Stings Op 22 would always be a popular choice but Kenneth Sillito's fresh direction and tight control of his ensemble ensured that this was no mere re-run of previous performances. Perhaps the highlight of the playing throughout was the pure quality of the tone especially in cellos and violas, something which I had the impression was being deliberately sought to give a fresh blend of sound.
The next Trust concert is the great Monteverdi Vespers given by the Armonico Consort in Shrewsbury Abbey on October 4th.
Last Updated : 25/11/2008